Sleep Well, Be Well

Sleep Well, Be Well

It's wellness Wednesday. At least that's what I'm calling today for the sake of this post. Wellness can be defined many ways but it is basically the overall state of physical, mental and social well-being. It includes more than just eating eggs, drinking green smoothies and building muscles. It is your overall health and wellbeing.

A lot of us are working really hard on our wellness but one area that may get overlooked is our sleep. Sleep is so important for many aspects of our health and wellbeing.

I recently had many days in a row where I didn't sleep well, and that is very unusual for me. I would either toss and turn all night or wake up way too early and couldn't go back to sleep. I couldn't believe how bad I felt when it started to catch up with me. It was hard for me to focus, I had zero patience, and was just really moody. Don't ever go on a 3rd grade field trip when you haven't slept for days!

Real Talk

Real Talk

I have been into listening to podcasts lately, mostly nutrition and health related with some motivational ones thrown in there, and I love them! It's hard for me to sit down to read because I get bored and fall asleep quickly. Truth! I can listen to podcasts while I'm driving, cooking, walking or getting ready, which works great for me. I listened to one today called RealTalk RD, which gave me the idea for this post. She broke down articles and other topics with another RD. I will probably be doing more like this because I have a few RealTalk topics I'd like to put out there.

So, can we talk about diet, diets and dieting? I haven't really talked about this on the blog yet but I've been suffering from disordered eating for a while now. My disordered eating includes constantly thinking/obsessing about food, falling victim to dieting, and considering self-worth based on my weight and body size. I really don't know when all of this started but it has gradually gotten worse the last few years and I am so ready to deal with it so I can live my life again.

Cinnamon Energy Bites

Cinnamon Energy Bites

Energy balls or energy bites or protein balls or whatever you want to call them. These damn delicious little things are the best to have around for a quick snack, sweet treat or to take them on the go instead of a bar.

My son loves all things cinnamon like ice cream, bagels and of course snickerdoodle cookies. So, I used cinnamon for the inspiration for this recipe hoping he would like them. Are all kids this hard to please? Really, I made these for his baseball tournament last weekend and they ended up being a big hit in the dugout. Don’t freak out, I asked about allergies before passing them around.

These bites only require a few steps and they have lots of goodness inside. I used chia seeds, which you can find out more on their nutrition benefits here and they contain dates for a natural sweetener. I made 2 versions, one with protein powder and one without. I use Vega Organic Proteins and Greens powder, which has stevia making the bites have a bit of sweetener aftertaste. Both are good, just a little different.

Roasted Chicken 4 Ways

Roasted Chicken 4 Ways

A little bit of meal prepping can go a really long way when it comes to saving time and energy with meals. It is great whether you work full-time (or more), have kids in multiple activities throughout the week or just want something easy to make so you have more time for your favorite shows. Is anyone else watching Ozark right now? OMG! And, how 'bout them Chiefs! There are a few things I like to have on hand to keep lunch simple or to use for dinner when we are running out the door to soccer practice and baseball games.

One of our staples is roasted chicken. I love how versatile it is as far as flavors go and ways to use it. I roast a large pack of boneless chicken breasts at least weekly and use them in some darn delicious meals. Real chefs would tell you to use bone-in chicken for flavor but I don't care to mess with the bone-in breasts myself. If you don't mind it then give it a try! I also like to keep a lot of fresh veggies on hand so I often have most of the ingredients of the recipes I'm giving you today. With the chicken already cooked, meals come together in no time!

Kids Eat Right Month

Kids Eat Right Month

August is Kids Eat Right month with summer ending and school back in session. This is a great time to remember how important nutrition is for our children's health, wellbeing and learning. We as parents have the opportunity to give our kids the tools needed to make great choices now and later in life. These little people are our future!

My last post focused on modeling healthy habits and setting up positive behaviors around food. Really, it was focused on some of my big no-no's when it comes to health and nutrition for kids. Let's focus a little more on what we are giving them and the why when it comes to kids nutrition for learning and for life.

Breakfast is a must!

I know you have all heard that kids do better in school when they eat breakfast. It is so true and they do even better with a nutritious breakfast. Breakfast is an opportunity to provide a lot of nutrients. Kids not only perform better on school work and tests with a good breakfast but they also have more energy and better behavior.